Meirs Hanover Matches Track Record in Open Win at Pocono

Jul 8, 2012 | Racing

July 7, 2012
Meirs Hanover matched a track record at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs with his victory in 1:48:1 in Saturday night’s featured Open pace. The race carried a purse of $50,000.
Meirs Hanover, a 5-year-old stallion from the Ron Burke barn looking for a bounce back after breaking stride in the Ben Franklin final due to interference, left from post position #2 in the field of eight as a 6-1 shot and found the pocket early behind pacesetting 6-5 favorite Golden Receiver. The leader had to fight off pressure from Rockincam on the front stretch and Dial Or Nodial on the back, leading to sizzling fractions of 26:1, 53:2, and 1:20:1.
In the stretch, driver Matt Kakaley tipped Meirs Hanover into the passing lane and he rallied past the game Golden Receiver to win by a half-length. Special T Rocks came on for 3rd. The winning time of 1:48:1 matched the Pocono record for aged pacing stallions that was set just two weeks ago in the Franklin eliminations by Aracache Hanover.
Meirs Hanover, the offspring of Artsplace and Mary Mattgalane and owned by Burke Racing Stable, Van Dusen, Cimaglio, and Strollin Stable, won for the 4th time in 14 2012 races. It was his 21st career victory, giving him lifetime earnings of $460,207.
In addition to the Open pace, Grand Circuit Week continued at Pocono with three $50,000 divisions each of the 3-year-old colts and geldings on the trot and on the pace. On the trotting side, the winners were: Fashion Astral (Broadway Hall-Lindy Lane), owned by Fashion Farms LLC, trained by Jim Campbell, and driven by Matt Kakaley, in 1:54:4; Nothing But Class (Andover Hall-Bold Dreamer), owned by Christina Takter, John Fielding, Louie Camara, and Jan Hoibye, and trained and driven by Jimmy Takter, in 1:54:2; and Uncle Peter (Cantab Hall-Victory Treasure), owned by Christina Takter, John and Jim Fielding, and Falkbolagen Ab, and trained and driver by Jimmy Takter, in 1:52:3.
On the pacing side, the winners were Mcerlean (McArdle-Igottwowordsforyou), owned by Muscara Racing Trust, trained by Trond Smedshammer, and driven by Matt Kakaley, in 1:51:1; Star Recruit (Dragon Again-Remarkable Star), owned by Carter, Carter, Reid, and Grubbs, trained by Bruce Riegle, and driven by Tony Hall, in 1:51:4; and I Like Dreamin (McArdle-I’m Not Dreamin), owned by Lomangino Standardbreds and Leo Lomangino, trained by Sam DePinto, and driven by George Napolitano Jr., in 1:51:4.

History made in Van Rose Memorial Pace

May 8, 2012 | Racing

WILKES-BARRE PA — Special T Rocks shrugged off a tough trip to win the $50,000 Van Rose Memorial Invitational Pace at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs Saturday night, May 5th, in the process equaling the world record of 1:48.3 for four-year-old altered pacers on a five-eighth mile track. 
The son of Rocknroll Hanover was driven gamely by his trainer Daryl Bier, also co-owner with Forest Bartlett and Joann Dombeck — yanking back into a 3-hole early, then snapping back out with cover after Dial Or Nodial, who was the force behind the opening splits of 26.3 and 53.3, wagered war with uncovered Fred And Ginder through and past the 1:21 three-quarters. Despite the hard usage, Bier still had a ton of horse, and confidently tipped his horse 3-deep late on the turn. The rocket-fast four-year-old took it from there, filling his hopples to the wire to break the Pocono division track mark (1:49.2, Tivoli Hanover, 2008) while equaling Maltese Artist’s world standard for this size of oval (Dover, 2005). The all-age mark for the 5/8s is 1:48, co-set by Artistic Fella, Mister Big, and We Will See, the last-named doing it at Pocono last year. 
Dancin Yankee, kept off the scorching pace, found room in the lane and was up for 2nd at long odds, with Dial Or Nodial, a Breeders Crown competitor last year, hanging tough for the show dough. 
Special T Rocks raised his seasonal record to an enviable 16-9-3-1, with a bankroll already this year of $182,250, and a lifetime sum of $259,964.  
The race honored Clarence Van Rose, a longtime writer for the local Times-Leader newspaper who passed away last year, with Pocono management thoughtfully staging the event for the native of Kentucky on a day a certain special horse race is held in the Bluegrass State. Van saw the Pocono tide rise and fall over the years, and he himself would probably be the first to remark that “his” mile was probably about 15 seconds faster than the average of all the races he witnessed at Pocono over the years.